Risk is a Hot Potato

Avoid opening and serving a can of risk to a client when going through a negotiation. Especially not when the product you are providing is not the buyer’s only option.

For example, imagine a situation where the equipment you are supplying to industry is doing pretty well. Multiple orders are about to drop. You might think it a good time to let your potential client know that if they hold back on placing an order soon, they might have to go to the back of the line for deliveries.

Well, it depends. If you were in the west, your counterpart might be more inclined to appreciate your candor, and your openness might actually be a strong enough call to action to get you the deal.  Scarcity and social proof doing its magic again right?

In Asia, especially in China, that most likely will be seen as show of weakness. You have just introduced an unknown variable into the procurement team’s decision equation.

“Can I trust them to deliver on time if they are this busy?”

“What if my boss isn’t able to decide till next Wednesday? I don’t want to get into trouble…”

If communication of tight delivery schedules is needed, and that call to action is still something you want to throw out there, ring-fence that risk. Instead of saying that deliveries might get delayed, try putting a fixed number next to your statement.

“If an order isn’t placed within the week, expected delivery time then goes to 3 months.”

This way, risk in the form of an extra unknown variable is taken away from the buyer’s smorgasbord of decision making factors.

Risk is a hot potato, don’t be passing it onto a potential client’s lap! You do not want to be the supplier that makes a procurement team’s job that little more complex.